Monthly Archives: March 2015

Liquid lunches

Several times each year, The University of Manchester Library staff are invited to take part in a “Liquid Lunch”. Held at lunchtime, as you’d expect, this is a chance for staff to hear from speakers from around or outside the University on a variety of different perspectives and new ideas. Those attending bring their own sandwiches and drinks are available.

Most speakers are external to the Library, but in March my colleagues in the Business Data Service (BDS) and I had a chance to present to the group. The topic? Specialist business and financial databases: Behind the curtain.

With 30 interested colleagues from across the Library in attendance, we were happy to share some introductory information about how we help users of business databases get access to the data they need.

Xia Hong described the different coverage areas of BDS, including identification of existing Library resources, investigation of new resources, managing of databases, and advice and best practice on working with large datasets.

Phil Reed showed the topological tube network he’d made, explaining that some databases can only be accessed from certain computers in the Library, some can be accessed anywhere on-campus at Manchester, and still others can be accessed from anywhere with an Internet connection. With over 50 databases covering business and management, choosing the right one is not always straightforward, and we work to help users find the right database.

We were joined by our colleague Jane Marshall, Academic Engagement Librarian for Manchester Business School (MBS). Jane is the first point of contact for our academic colleagues, and she described her work arranging for curriculum-linked library or database training.

Earthquakes and equity

Brian Hollingsworth gave a demonstration of Bloomberg. He showed some of the most-used areas such as share price data, alongside some of the unexpected areas of information such as earthquake data. Brian holds Equity Essentials certification in the Bloomberg Essentials Training Program, and it was easy to see the depth of his knowledge about what Bloomberg offers and how to access it. Students who pursue certification will find it increases their skills in working with Bloomberg and also may make them more attractive to prospective employers.

As the newest member of the team, having joined in January, what did I do? I posed example questions from students, academic staff and non-academic staff; these questions were answered by the others in the team. Knowing the kinds of questions that come to us helped our colleagues understand more about what we do.

Engaging with our colleagues

Initial feedback on the presentation was positive. Some questions posed, such as those about how we evaluate our services and how the MBS redevelopment will enhance our services, provide good food for further thinking and development. Our colleagues were enthusiastic about Bloomberg and all the information it holds; we may see many new users coming to our Bloomberg terminals!

Planning and delivering the presentation gave our team a chance to consider what we though our colleagues might not already know that we’d like them to know. We would recommend this type of presentation to other teams at Manchester and beyond. What might be hiding behind a curtain near you?

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Want to improve your data skills and know more about statistics? The University of Manchester Library has teamed up with the Cathie Marsh Institute for Social Research (CMIST) to offer a new course. ‘Statistics for Librarians’ will run on March 20 in Manchester.. Participants completing the course will be awarded a CMIST, University of Manchester, Data Skills certificate.